


Tally marks 卌

by orphan_account



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Aged Up, Cafe AU, Changlix is in the background, College AU, M/M, Minor Character Death, Pining, Soul Mate AU, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, and eventual, but also just kinda???, but in the past, but not really...., love shows, slowburn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-04-03
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:35:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23383876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When you fall in love a red tally mark appears on your skin.When you fall out of love the mark turns white.If the loved one dies before that, the mark turns black.Some's are bigger and some's are small. Some are covered in marks, some have none. Some wear them proudly while others hide them under makeup and covering clothes.Some, like Han Jisung, don’t have any marks and don't feel any shame over it.Others, Like Lee Minho, feel like they would rather die than let anyone see how many he's collected.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 18
Kudos: 51





	1. |

**Author's Note:**

> Hello good people of the internet!  
> This is my frist ship fic so uuh... please be kind......... heh

“Han Jisung I swear to god if you don’t open this door right this instant I will dropkick you so hard you wish you were dead!”

Jisung threw up the door to his dorm, donned in nothing but a towel around his waist and his hair still dripping with water, “Yang Jeongin take that back right this instant or  _ I  _ swear to god i’ll tell your brother you said that”. 

Jeongin only glared in response. They’d known each other way too long for there to be any shock over skin being shown, especially Jisung’s. 

Everyone who’d known Jisung for more than five minutes knew he didn’t have any tally marks despite being almost 22 and that he didn’t give a single fuck about it. In fact he made a point of showing off his unmarked skin whenever he could. Some (Jeongin) would say he was overcompensating because of insecurities but no one (Jeongin) would ever dare tell Jisung that to his face. 

The dressed one of the two only glared in response to the threat and shoved Jisung aside to get into the small room, “No you wouldn’t. You’re just as scared of him as everyone else”.

Jisung stared after him in faux shock with a hand to his chest, “How  _ dare _ you assume that I would be scared of him?”

Jeongin flopped down on the bed and took out his phone, “Because you didn’t say a word the entire time you were over for dinner last week and every time he looked at you, you almost had a  _ heart attack _ ,” Jeongin lowered his phone and marked the last word with another meaning glare.

Jisung folded his arms over his puffed out chest, “I will neither deny or confirm that statement”.

Jeongin hummed and took up his phone again. Jisung realised what was happening a second too late. The flash went off and Jeoning turned the phone around with a grin to show off a very high quality picture of a half naked Jisung. 

“If you’re not ready in three minutes i’m gonna send this pic to Chan-hyung. Get a fucking move on.”

“You absolute asshole!” Jisung yelled as he dived for his wardrobe. 

Ten minutes later Jisung was finally dressed and the two friends were on their way to the cafe they’d had their weekly study date at for the past eight years, The Stray Cat. 

The two boys had known each other since middle school because their dearest mothers insisted they walk to school together. Even though they weren’t in the same year they still became good friends immediately and they’ve been inseparable ever since. Since going to college the two found themselves in a bit of a struggle though. 

Deptite them going to the same college they barely saw each other on campus because of their different majors. Jisung had moved into the dorms his second term and because of that they didn't live within walking distance anymore either. Because they now had to go out of their way to meet up they decided to get out as early as possible every saturday so they could spend as much time together as possible while still studying. This specific day that plan may or not have failed because Jisung overslept and by the time the boys finally made it out from Jisungs dorm it was already way past midday. 

“You wouldn’t actually send that picture to Chan right? I mean I’m confident in my body but I ain’t about flaunting it to someone I just met. Much less my best friend’s brother”, Jisung dared a sideway glance at his friend, who despite being a year younger had suddenly grown quite a bit taller than him. 

“What do you think of me, dude?”, Jeongin laughed and swept his hair back, giving Jisung a flash of the new red mark on his wrist. Jisung made a mental note to ask him about it later. “Chan-hyung is as new to me as he is to you. Just because we live in the same house doesn’t mean I’m suddenly BFFs with him! And besides", Jeongin snickered, "I know you wanna impress him with how cool you are" 

“I’m gonna pretend like i didn’t hear that last part”. 

Jeongin and Chan weren't biological brothers. Jeongin’s mother and Chan’s father recently got married and since that timed with Chan leaving college (due to  _ mysterious _ reasons) his father and he ended up moving in with Jeongin and his mother at the same time. 

“But shouldn’t you two’ve been spending a lot of time together?”, Jisung asked.

“I barely see him. He’s literally always in his room except for dinner and then he’s too busy eating to even talk to us”, Jeongin huffed. He was obviously annoyed having to share his home with someone who didn’t even try to get to know him but Jisung knew it was more than that.

Chan’s father was around for quite a bit before the marriage and Jisung had met him quite a few times. He’d always talk about his son who was studying astronomy back in australia. He was so passionate, so driven and he was going to be  _ so _ successful. Jeongin didn’t say it out loud but Jisung knew he’d been excited to finally have the older brother he’d always dreamt of having. Turned out Chan wasn’t that. Not at all. 

“Well then I guess you can just pretend he doesn’t exist”, Jisung mused. 

“Yeah,  _ sure _ ”, Jeongin drawled. 

“Oh stop it, don’t be an ass”, Jisung bumped their shoulders together. 

“Only if you’re not an ass first”, Jeongin bumped back even harder. 

“You were the ass first so you stop first!”, Jisung put all of his body into bumping Jeongin to the other side of the pavement.

Jeongin stumbled but re-gained his footing and came barging back, “You were born first which means you were an ass first!”

Jisung lost his balance and reached out for the closest thing to stop his fall. That thing ended up being Jeongin. The two stumbled and fell down in a heap of laughs on the ground.

卌

“Hey Jisung, Jeongin!” Changbin called from behind the counter when the two entered the cafe. 

Changbin the chatty barista had been working at the cafe for almost three years now. During that time the three of them had developed something close to a friendship. They'd never met outside the cafe but whenever the two younger boys came in Changbin would chat with them if he had time and sneak them free refills when the manager wasn't looking. He took care of them and in return they entertained him during his breaks. They even helped the older tidy up sometimes when they stayed late. 

“Hey Changbin-hyung! How are you?”, Jeongin bounced up to the counter 

“Same old, same old”, Changmin mused, “the usual?”, Changbin asked but he’d already picked up the cups and ingredients needed for their drinks. During the time the two had come to The Stray Cat they’d tasted their way through the menu multiple times and had settled for their safe favourites. Jeongin went for an iced caramel latte regardless the season and Jisung ordered a chai latte with one shot of espresso. 

“The usual”, Jisung answered as he searched his overfull backpack for his wallet, which was nowhere to be found. “Shit… i must’ve left my wallet at home. Jeongin can you pay?”

“I left mine at home too…”

The two boys stared at each other. Changbin had already started making their drinks and while they’d been talking a line of new customers had started forming behind them, 

“Don’t you have any cash on you or anything?”, Jisung sighed. He’d been in such a hurry he hadn’t packed his bag properly. He never left home without his wallet but this time Jeonin had stressed him so much with that picture he’d completely forgotten.

“I always pay with my card”, Jeongin deadpanned. 

Changbin mirrored Jisung’s sigh and rubbed his neck, “Sorry guys the managers in today so I can’t sneak them to you for free this time”.

“Ah no, no it’s okay hyung we just-” Jeongin started but was promptly cut off. 

“Hey are you gonna pay or what?” 

The two boys jumped and whipped around at the sound of a stranger's voice behind them. 

A man with stark black hair matching his matted leather jacket was glaring at them though his unstyled bangs. Jisung couldn’t do much more than stare at the stranger in shock. He knew the face of everyone who came to the little café. The Stray Cat wasn’t near any main streets and it wasn’t very known so almost all the customers were regulars, but Jisung had never seen this person before.

Jeongin clearly wasn’t as shocked as Jisung because he instantly started explaining and apologising while Jisung still couldn’t stop staring at him. 

He was clad completely in black, except for a white shirt peeking up from under his jacket. Black jeans tucked into leather boots. He had a shiny motorcycle helmet in one hand and a black leather wallet in the other. It wasn’t something you’d usually see someone wearing in the middle of the June heat but the man didn’t look at all bothered. 

“Jesus christ”, the stranger groaned, cutting off jeongin once again and bringing Jisung out of his daze, “I’ll pay for your goddamn drinks just stop holding up the queue”.

Before anyone could question or argue the stranger had already whipped out his card, squeezed past Jisung, ordered a black coffee for himself and blipped the card to the machine.

Changbin raised an eyebrow at the stranger but immediately got to work on his drink. 

“I- Thank you”, Jisung spluttered out as he struggled to get his backpack back on and take his finished drink from the counter as fast as he could.

“Please, don’t”, the man didn’t even look at them as he put his card back into his wallet, took the cup of coffee Changbin handed him and started towards one of the empty tables, “Just don’t forget your wallet next time.”

“Well, that was intense…” Jeongin had grabbed his own drink and came to stand beside Jisung as they watched the man find a table at the back of the cafe by the big windows to settle down. 

“No kidding”, Jisung agreed. But what was even more intense was that no matter how hard Jisung tried he couldn’t take his eyes off of him. 

“C’mon let’s go to our table”

The two hadn’t only settled for their signature drink they had also claimed a table as their own. After spending quite some time at all the different tables in the café they'd decided the best spot was on the more quiet second floor (which was more a loft overlooking the café), in the corner by the window wall. From there you could see almost the entire café. The entrance, the counter where Changbin was currently working his way through the afternoon rush of customers and the tables currently hosting couples, friends and lone students. 

The reason they’d picked that table wasn't just because of the location though. It was also big enough to fit their drinks, notebooks and laptops without being too cramped but small enough to only fit two people, meaning that however full the café got they never had to share. 

The two boys set down their drinks and started filling up the table with all the things they needed to study. Jeongin, who was a literature major, only brought the book he’d been tasked to read that day and his sticky notes to mark pages with. Jisung on the other hand was a psychology major. He had three different textbooks, at least three notebooks with notes scattered between them and his laptop with his professors' powerpoints and assignments on.

Jeongin immediately got to work flipping his book to the page where he left off but Jisung was finding it more difficult to focus. From where he was sitting he only had to strain his neck a little to see the leather clad stranger who'd laid for their drinks. 

As they saw earlier the man had opted for a table in the corner. He’d seated himself on the sofa that ran all along the back wall meaning he was facing the entrance. His cup of steaming black coffee looked untouched and he kept checking his phone as if he was waiting for something. Or maybe  _ someone _ ?

Just as Jisung was about to ask Jeongin about it, the bell over the entrance jingled and a familiar face entered.

“Oh my god why is Chan here?”, Jisung exclaimed a little too loud too for such a small room. 

Jeongin who was already engrossed in his book whipped his head up so fast he must’ve gotten whiplash, “What do you mean Chan-hyung is here?”

“Over there”, Jisung pointed with his whole arm to where Chan was currently standing at the counter ordering from Changbin.

Jeonging slapped down his hand, “Oh my god why is he here? How does he even know about this place?”

Jisung looked back to the stranger and swallowed a gasp, “I think I know”. He took hold of Jeongin’s hand and used it to point to where the stranger was now standing up to greet Chan as he walked over with his drink. 

The two boys stared in disbelief as the two men below them shook hands and settled down at the table. 

“What-”, whispered Jeoning, “and i can not stress this enough - the fuck?”


	2. ||

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Proof that Jisung and Jeongin could be undercover spies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This hasn't been BETAd by anyone by me so there might be a few misstakes, srry about that <3

Reading and assignments now completely forgotten, Jisung and Jeongin stared in dismay as Chan and the mysterious stranger talked over their respective cups of black coffee. 

“Correct me if I’m wrong but Chan moved here from Australia like, a month ago? And he’s barely gone out since then, right? What are the odds of him befriending someone who knows this café?”, Jisung didn’t take his eyes off the two men as he asked and neither did Jeongin when he answered. 

“I mean I don’t know what he does when I’m out or in class but he hasn’t mentioned anything to either his dad or me about having any friends here yet.”

“We both agree this is weird as fuck, right?”, Jisung turned to his friend, eyes wide. 

Jeoning mirrored his expression, “weird as _fuck._ ”

The two turned their attention back to the men on the lower floor and watched in silence. It didn’t look like they’d met before and neither did it look like they were there to get to know each other. Jisung crossed off _date, reunion_ and _hangout_ from his metal list of possible scenarios. His thoughts came to a screeching halt when the stranger brought a piece of paper out from his jacket pocket, unfolded it and presented it to Chan with a pen in the other hand. 

“Is that a _contract?_ ”, Jeongin scene-whispered in Jisung’s ear. 

Jisung jumped at the sudden exclamation and pushed Jeongin away.

“I don’t know but i’m gonna find out”.

By the time Jeongin realised what was happening Jisung had already grabbed the other boy's hoodie that was tied around the strap of his backpack, slung it on, pulled up the hood and was halfway down the stairs. 

If he was being completely honest he hadn’t quite planned this out. Like at all. There was a toilet on the first floor in the opposite corner from where Chan and the stranger were sitting. If he used that as an excuse he might get close enough. Because of how narrow the café was there was quite a big chance he’d be able pick up some of their conversation if I walked slow enough, but not slow enough that he’d lose his cover. 

Jisung pulled up the hood lower and kept his head down as he made his way through the café. He’d only met Chan once so the older might not recognise him but Jisung wasn’t taking any chances. Thankfully there was already a queue to the toilets which meant he had more time but he was also able to stand a little closer to their table without seeming suspicious. Since the loft covered that side of the café he couldn’t see Jeoingin but if the non-stop buzzing in his back pocket said anything, the younger was _not_ happy about this plan. 

“Okay I think that’s it Chan-ssi Do you have any other questions?”

Jisung cursed under his breath, he was too late. 

“Ah no, no questions but I just want to make sure I've got the address right since you're not on naver yet”.

Jisung dug up his phone just in time to write down the address the stranger dictated to Chan. He’d have to check to make sure but if jisung was correct that address was on the complete opposite side of town.

Chan thanked the stranger for his time, drank up the last of his coffee and got up to leave the café. The stranger stayed until Chan was out of the building, let out a sigh then got up to leave too. 

“Excuse me, are you going to use the bathroom?”, the old lady Jisung always saw flirting with the staff was standing behind him in the queue he was suddenly at the front of. 

“Oh uh- no sorry, go ahead”, Jisung tried not to visibly blush as he let the lady pass him and quickly hurried back to the second floor. 

“What the hell was that?”, Jeongin met him halfway and punched him in the shoulder as soon as he came up the stairs, “What if he saw you?” he attempted a second punch but Jisung dodged just in time.

“I got an address!” He held up his phone with the note on display in Jeongin’s face, “I don’t know what’s there and Chan mentioned it wasn’t on naver so we can’t check but it's something”

Jeonign took the phone and started tapping away furiously, muttering to himself, “What kind of place isn’t on naver? There’s gotta be _some_ information. Chan might just be a fucking boomer”

Jisung let out a laugh at that last comment. The mental image of the cool, mysterious big brother Chan struggling with basic technology was too weird.

“So? Did you find anything?”, Jisung got tired of standing and waiting so he took hold of Jeongin’s elbow and led him back to their table. 

“I can’t believe this”, Jeongin slumped down in his chair.

“I take it that means you didn’t find anything”, Jisung asked around the brim of his cup. The chai latte had since long gone cold but it was good all the same, and he needed the caffeine. 

“There’s nothing, and when you go to images there’s just a building. No signs for a company or anything”, Jeongin sighed in defeat and gave Jisung back his phone, “What the hell is Chan-hyung up to?”

“Maybe he’s planning on joining the korean mafia”, Jisung mused.

“Bommer Bang Chan!” Jeongin suddenly declared with a straight face. “Most feared gangster in Seoul!”

Jisung burst out laughing.

“I bet his weapon of choice would be a fucking cane or something!”, Jeongin continued though his his own laughter.

Jisung gasped for breath, “his form of torture would be telling you his not mad, just dissapointed”

The two doubled over on the table filled with their abandoned schoolwork.

It took them several failed tries a lot more jokes on Chan's expense before they finally calmed down enough to get some work done. Despite their tendency for jokes and banter they worked hard and before they knew it several hours, many refills and quite a few pieces of cheesecake had passed. The sun was setting outside and Jeongin stifled a yawn. 

“Aw the baby's tired”, Jisung cooed.

“It’s not my fault we’ve been here for like-”, he dug up his phone from under all of Jisung’s textbooks to check the time, “it’s seven o’clock so we’ve been here for seven hours already how could i not be tired?”

Jisung shrugged, “I mean we only worked like three of those hours so…”

Jeongin glared in response.

“Okay, okay stop with the look of death”, Jisung snorted, “I guess you’re right. We should head home”. 

They packed up their stuff and played rock, paper scissors over who should carry down the dishes they’d accumulated.

“Hey Jisung you, uuh, need a hand with that?” Changbin offered as he saw the boy trying to balance five plates and three cups on top of each other while walking down from the second floor.

“Nah man, I'm good but thanks for offering hyung!”, Jisung answered just as he took the last step down the stairs and almost tripped over his own feet. 

“Careful!”, Changbin yelped, “If you drop that I’m the one who has to clean it up you know?” 

Jisung just smiled sheepishly and started placing the dishes on the collection rack. 

"Are you in tomorrow Hyung?", Jeongin asked as they watched Jisung almost drop the same cup three times. 

"Nah, Saturdays are my day off this month"

Jeongin hummed in response. 

Jisung finally managed to get all the dishes up on the rack and joined Jeongin by the counter. The two bid their goodbyes to Changbin and made their way out into the evening. 

"So what are we gonna do about this?", Jisung kicked a pebble so it bounced against the walls of the alleyway they walked through.

Jeongin kicked it back, "what do you mean?" 

"Don't you wanna find out what Chan was doing meeting that weird angry guy?", Jisung had to jump forward to kick the pebble back. 

"Hyung, I don't know if you've realised this but we both have a lot of schoolwork right now", Jeongin let the pebble fall behind, "should we really be spending time on stalking my brother?" 

Jisung sighed and looked up at the sky. The sun was setting, painting the sky in the most beautiful colours. 

"Hey, Jeoning?" 

The younger hummed in response. 

"who's the new mark for?" 

Jeongin stopped in his tracks, hand covering his wrist, "why do you care?" 

"woah there", Jisung put his hands up, "no need to get so defensive I'm just curious" 

Jeongin huffed and started walking again, "for someone who doesn't care about marks you sure care a lot about mine."

"You're my best friend you ass", Jisung caught up and bumped their shoulders together, "of course I'm curious who caught your eye". 

Jeongin bumped back, "I thought we established _you_ were the ass". 

卌

That night Jisung couldn't sleep. His mind kept wandering back to the cafe. To Chan showing up and the mysterious stranger with a moody attitude. How he'd sighed when Chan left. How he'd barely touched his coffee dispute all the trouble he went through to order it. How Jeongin wouldn't tell him about his new mark despite the two sharing everything with each other. 

It was past 3am when he finally made up his mind. 

**Jisung**

Meet me at the train station at 10am tomorrow

卌

"Why am I here?", Jeongin asked through a yawn. 

"Aww did baby not get enough sleep yesterday?", Jisung cooed, swiftly ignoring the question. 

"Oh shut up, I was doing something important" Jeongin bumped their shoulders together

"Uhuh, sure" Jisung bumped back.

They made a quick stop by the station’s cafe to grab coffee before getting on a train towards town. The coffee was nowhere near as good and The Stay Cat's but it did the trick. 

The two sat in silence sipping their coffee as they watched out the window of the train. It was only when they passed the river that Jeongin finally understood where they were going. 

"Wait, are we stalking my brother? Hyung!" 

Jisung shushed the younger and waved his hand in dismissal, "Shut it, you're just as curious as I am. Besides, we're only going to figure out what it is, then we can leave."

Jeongin slumped back in his seat and took a big gulp of his coffee, cringing at the bitter taste, “You’re gonna be the death of me, hyung”.

“That’s where you’re wrong young grasshopper”, Jisung announced with a triumphant smile, ”I’m the reason you’re still alive!”

“Debatable”

They sat in silence for a few more minutes. Not because they had nothing to talk about but rather because they’d come to a point where they could just enjoy each other's company without talking. Jisung was an introvert and Jeongin wasn't the biggest extrovert either. They matched. 

Jisung let his mind wander. This really wasn’t like him. Usually he’d spend his sundays at home in bed watching youtube videos and spamming Jeongin with random memes. He knew his friend probably caught on to this uncharacteristic adventure as well but for whatever reason he’d chosen not to point it out. 

“Hey, I don't think Chan-hyung saw us yesterday by the way”, jeoning brought jisung out of his thoughts. 

“How so?”

“Mm well, he was normal at dinner and he didn’t look like he was trying to hide anything. He seemed more cheerful though. He even talked to me but he didn’t mention anything about going out or anything so he wasn’t trying to figure out if i saw him”. 

Jisung hummed and downed the last of his coffee, “Good observation young grasshopper. Very good”.

The train rolled to a stop and the doors opened.

“We’re here”

  
  


卌

“There’s nothing here”, Jeongin announced. 

The two boys had walked through the unfamiliar streets, Jisung guiding them with naver maps and he was positive they’d ended up at the right place but before them was a big gray building with no signs, no advertisement, no nothing. 

“Are you sure you typed in the right address, hyung?” 

Jisung _was_ sure but he still checked again. Everything was right. He remembered the stranger clearing saying the street number was 25 and there they were. The GPS said they were at the right place, the number on the wall said it and Jisung’s gut screamed it. 

“Let’s go in”, Jisung didn’t wait for Jeongin to answer, he just started towards the door before he could change his mind. 

“Hyung! Hyung, what the fuck are you doing?!”, Jeonging yelped as Jisung threw up the door and marched in. 

The younger sprinted after his friend and straight into his back. 

“Hyung what the fuck you can’t just stop like that! I almost broke my nose on your stupid head! _”_

“Oh, that sounds unpleasant”, a stranger's voice interrupted Jeongin’s scolding.

Jeongin peaked around Jisung’s back with a hand to his nose to see the reason his friend had stopped so abruptly. 

In front of them was a big white room with a round desk in the centre, built around a thick pillar. There was no one in the room except for a young man at the desk, the same person who’d just talked. 

The man looked about their age with chestnut coloured hair, dressed in a light blue sweater with a neatly ironed shirt underneath. He looked so… _dandy._

“How can I help you two?”, the man asked with his head tilted to the side. 

“Uuuh”, Jisung answered intelligently and mirrored the man’s tilt. 

Jeongin pushed the older one to the side, “Hi, we were just wondering what this place is?”

The man at the desk smiled politely at the two, “It’s a centre for young creators!”

Jeongin took hold of Jisung’s arm and walked them closer to the desk while the man continued.

“We only just opened which is why we haven’t got any signs on the door yet. How did you two find your way here without knowing what we are?”

“Uhhhh”, Jisung repeated. 

“We stumbled upon a note with the address and we didn’t have anything better to do so we came to check it out”, Jeongin filled in. 

It wasn’t the best lie and it still sounded a bit creepy but at least it was better than stalking. 

“Well, now that you’re here how about I show you around?”

“Oh no, that’s not-”, Jeongin started but Jisung caught him off, having finally regained his composure. 

“We’d love that!”

“Well then, follow me!”, The man got out from behind the desk and gestured to a corridor to the right, “My name is Seungmin by the way! I work here as a receptionist but I’m also one of the members”.

Jisung pulled Joeing along with him to follow Seungmin, “Member?”

“Ah yeah, the way this place works is that you pay a membership fee and then you’re free to book and use our different practice rooms and borrow equipment whenever you want”.

Seungmin led them down a long corridor with a row of doors to their right, and framed pictures of different famous singers on the left, “The first floor is for singing rooms. They’re quite small but each one has a piano and a small stereo to play music from. They’re all isolated of course”. 

Seungmin led them through a door at the end of the corridor that led to a bright and airy stairwell. Jisung looked back as the door closed behind them. The door was painted yellow in stark contrast to the white walls around them. The door of the second floor was painted bright red. Seungmin opened it and let the two enter through it before following after them. 

“The second floor is for dance studios. They differ in size so we prioritize the bigger once for bigger groups of people. Some of them have windows but they all have curtains you can draw if you want privacy”.

As Seungmin led the two through the corridor they both couldn’t help but look in through the windows they passed. None of the rooms seemed to be occupied but the one seungmin stopped in front of however, was. 

“Ah, minho’s in here! He’s the co-owner of this place”, Seungmin explained.

Jisung looked in through the window and failed to hold back his gasp. It was the stranger from the café. He was still dressed in all black but this time he wore a long sleeved t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. He was in the process of pulling his too long bangs back with a headband when Seungmin opened the door to say hi. 

Jisung had been too shocked by seeing him, _Minho_ , that he hadn’t even realised someone had come into the corridor from the other direction until he spoke.

“Jeongin?”

Jising’s head whipped around to the new person. The boy was holding a water bottle and his blond hair was drenched in sweat. Even from far away Jisung could see the freckles on his cheeks. 

_Wait. Jeongin?_

Jisung turned to his friend just in time to see him bolting through the corridor in the way they’d come, flinging up the door and disappearing into the stairwell. 

Jisung looked back to the freckled stranger, “I’m gonna… go”, He turned to Seungmin who was still talking to Minho, oblivious to the shitshow that just happened out in the corridor, “Thank you for showing us around Seungmin-ssi!”

Jisung ran after his friend without looking back. He wanted to know more about this place and why Chan was going to go there but right now his friend was more important. 

He was sprinting down the stairs two at a time and flung open the door only to run face first into a solid body. 

“Oh my gosh!”, Chan exclaimed, “are you okay?”

Jisung looked up from where he’d landed on the ground.

_Fuck._

He quickly got up and dusted himself off, “yeah, no, i’m fine don’t worry i’m just clumsy, sorry!”, he tried to get past the older but he stood in the way.

“Wait aren’t you Jeongin’s friend?”

_Fuckfuckfuckfuck._

“Yes- uuh yes, I am”, Jisung rubbed his neck, “Nice to meet you again Chan-hyung”.

“Likewise!”, Chan answered with the brightest smile Jisung had ever seen. 

“What are you doing here Chan-hyung?”, Jisung asked but quickly added, “If you don’t mind me asking of course!”

Chan laughed, “No not at all. I rented one of the producing studios! I joined as a member yesterday so today is my first time coming here”, he explained. 

_That’s why he was signing a contract!_

“How about you Jisung?”

_FUCK!_

“Oh I- uuh”, Jisung panicked. He couldn’t tell the truth and he was shit at lying what the fuck was he _supposed to say?_! “I produce”, Jisung deadpanned. 

That wasn’t technically a lie. He _did_ write and produce music but he hadn’t for quite some time and definitely not there. 

Chan’s smile brightened even more, “I guess we’ll be seeing a lot of each other then!”

And just like that the older man walked past Jisung and up the stairs. Jisung watched him until he disappeared around the corner then realised he still had to go after his Jeongin. On his way out he made a quick stop by the reception desk Seungmin had yet to return to and picked up one of the information pamphlets. 

“Jeongin! Jeongin where are you?”, Jisung called as he exited the building. The sun was high in the sky now and Jisung seriously regretted not bringing his sunglasses. He could barely see when Jeongin got out from the alleyway to his right.

“I’m here hyung”, his voice was so mellow Jisung could barely hear him.

“Innie!”, Jisung ran over, “Why’d you run off like that?”, he demanded. 

Jeongin only rubbed his marked wrist with his hand instead of replying but that was answer enough.

“The mark is for that guy in the corridor isn’t it? The guy who knew you?”

Jeongin’s nod was so small Jisung barely caught it. 

“And you didn’t want to tell me because you thought I'd judge you for falling in love with a guy?”, Jisung continued. 

Jeongin nodded again. He looked like he was on the verge of tears. 

“You’re an absolute idiot, Innie”, Jisung cooed and he wrapped the younger up in a big hug, “I’d never judge you for falling in love. I wouldn’t care if you fall in love with a fucking chair! I care that you’re happy”.

If Jeongin let out a small sob at that no one would ever know.

Jisung rocked them side to side as if he were actually holding a baby, “Also i’m gonna have to start producing again”.

Jeongin’s words were muted by the hug but Jisung heard them loud and clear.

“What the fuck, hyung?”


	3. |||

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they gay. That's it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> soooo this chapter was actually gonna be longer but then i decided to break a little earlier than planned. Hopefully that mean the next chapter will be up soon bc i already started writing it but who the fuck know hah

“So how’d you meet Mr. Freckles?”

The two boys sat on the train on their way home. They’d taken some time to walk around the empty streets in the area so that Jeongin could calm down without having to worry about curious eyes. They hadn’t talked, just walked around taking in the beautiful summer scenery of Seoul in full bloom. 

“He has a name you know”, Jeongin huffed.

“Yeah well you never told me, so until further notice i’ll be calling him Mr. Freckles”, Jisung declared. 

Jeongin let out a little laugh and Jisung held back a relieved sigh. Seeing his best friend so distressed wasn’t something he ever wanted to go through again. 

“His name is Felix and we met when one of my old professors gave me the wrong number for my partner in a group project”, Jeongin explained.

“The professor that got arrested for drug n shit?”

“Yeah, that one”

The two shared a laugh at the memory of that whole mess. The ex-professor has been really out of it, always giving his students the wrong information and mixing up information. When one of the students went to his office to confront him they caught him red handed in the middle of a drug deal. Turned out he wasn’t only doing drugs himself but also selling them to his students.

“Obviously he was really out of it because he accidentally gave me Felix’s number instead of my actual partners’ and the new professor canceled that project when she took over the course but for some reason me and Felix kept talking”, Jeongin continued on. 

Jisung only hummed and nodded, he didn't want to interrupt his friend with useless comments when he was opening up about something so personal.

“He goes to JYP too but we never met in person even though we’ve talked for almost three months now. All his classes are on the other side of the campus so we’ve never run into each other either. We follow each other on social media and all that and we talk pretty much everyday. He’s just so…”, Joengin sighed, “perfect”.

Jisung sucked in a breath at that. This was so unlike their usual humorous conversations, Jisung didn't want to accidentally say something wrong but he was so curious. 

“What makes him perfect?”, he asked carefully, making sure to keep his tone as casual as possible. 

“He just…”, Jeongin groaned and brought his hands up to his flushing cheeks giving Jisung a perfect view of the bright red mark on his wrist, “He’s funny, he’s cute, he’s so smart and so, so taleneted and he’s also really hot”, Jeongin flushed even more, “and he listens to me. I’ve never felt so seen by someone I've never even met properly”.

“But you have now, haven’t you?”, Jisung challenged.

Jeongin ran his hands through his hair and let out a groan, “Don’t remind me!”

“Why’d you run away?”, maybe he was pushing too hard but he wanted to know and quite frankly his friend wasn’t going to get anywhere with this potential relationship if he didn’t face it. Literally. 

“I panicked!”, Jeongin exclaimed, ”I’m wearing short sleeves! What if he saw my mark and figured out it’s for him?”

“Then maybe you could tell him the truth?”

Joengin dropped his hands to his lap, “no”, he deadpanned. 

“Well, okay then.”

That was enough relationship talk for today.

卌

When Jisung got home to his dorm he sat on his bed looking at the information pamphlet he’d taken earlier.  _ Young Wings…  _ it was a suiting name. He’d lied to Chan and said he was a member there and he couldn’t just not show up, the possibility of him asking Jeognin about it was too big. If he became a member maybe he’d be able to figure out a way to get Felix and Jeongin together but there was also the possibility of him running into the guy from the café… Minho. The dark and mysterious guy with anger-management issues. An hour passed before he finally grabbed his phone to write the email.

_ Hello! _

_ I came in earlier today and had a look around. I’m interested in applying for a membership. I saw on the information pamphlet that you need to go through an interview process before your membership can be approved. Would it be possible to set up an interview as soon as possible? _

_ Han Jisung.  _

卌

**Jisung**

Remind me again why I let my parents bully me into a psychology major?

**Jeongin**

Only if you explain how my parents did the same with my literature major.

If i read one more word i think my brain will explode

**Jisung**

one more word

Oh wait that’s three words

oops

**Joengin**

Thanks

You just killed your only friend

Hope you’re happy

**Jisung**

:D

**Jeongin**

-_-

**Jisung**

:(

**Jeongin**

That’s better bitch

“Mr. Han, I hope that’s not a phone I'm seeing”, the professor currently writing up some old dead men’s names on the board called.

“Not at all Mr. Min!” Jisung chirped as he stuffed his phone back in his pocket. 

His coursemates snickered around him but Jisung was unbothered. The other students and his professor may think he was a slacker but he knew better. Despite complaining about his major literally all the time Jisung was all caught up and had good grades in all of his courses. Just because he was good at psychology didn’t mean he liked it though. 

Mondays were the only days Jisung and Jongin's schedules didn’t overlap during lunch so they always made sure to eat together.

Currently Jisung was waiting outside the cafeteria closest to his dorm so they could go there and hang out once they’d eaten, as per tradition. 

“Hey! What the fuck!”, Jisung called when he saw his friend taking a shortcut over the lawn, “You’re supposed to be dead!”

He was too far away for a punch so Jeongin settled for e simple, “Fuck you, hyung!”

“Is that any way to talk to your elder?”, Jisung called back.

“You’re only five months older than me!”, Jeongin yelled and picked up the pace.

He was almost in punching distance now but Jisung already had already sealed his fate, he might as well go out with a bang.

“You know, when  _ I was _ your age-”, and that’s how far he got before Jeongin swung his backpack, filled with enough books to sustain a library, into his back. He went tumbling down on the ground with a grunt, “When i was your age i’m pretty sure that would count as assault”.

“Okay boomer, let’s go eat, I’m starving”. 

Jeongin helped Jisung up off the ground, grabbed the elders backpack and started towards the cafeteria. 

Jeongin may be a menace and an asshole at times but he was also the most caring and thoughtful person Jisung had ever met. Neither of them were very good at expressing affection but both of them knew they loved each other. At least Jisung knew he loved the younger. Despite his back just being broken…

“Did you talk anything to Mr. Freckles after yesterday?”, Jisung asked as they loaded up their trays with food. 

“Felix”, Jeongin corrected with a sigh, “And no. He messaged me yesterday but I haven't opened it", the boy threw down some cucumber slices on his tray with unnecessary force. 

_ Poor cucumbers _ Jisung thought. Out loud he said, "do it now. I'll be your emotional support squirrel." 

They found a free table and sat down. Jeongin immediately slumped, resting his head facedown on the sticky tabletop. 

"Nice try hyung. Not even you embracing your squirrel dna will help with this one". 

Jisung reached out a hand to pat his friends head and stole one of the abused cucumbers with the other, plopping it into his mouth before Jeongin noticed. 

"It was worth a try", he shrugged even though his friend couldn't see it, "want water?" 

Jeongin turned his head so his check was squished against the table, "yeah, thanks hyung, you're the best"

The younger closed his eyes just in time to miss the mischievous glint in Jisung's eyes as he got up and went around the table. Before Jeongin had the chance to react Jisung jumped at him from behind, hand shooting towards the phone sticking out of the back pocket of his jeans. When Jeongin realised what was happening Jisung had already rushed back to his side of the table, unlocked the phone with his fingerprint and opened the message app. 

"Hyung!", Jeongin yelped, reaching over the table trying to grab the phone from Jisung's hands but it was too late. 

"He wants to meet up!", Jisung screached, holding the phone up high out of Jeongins reach. 

"Would you  _ shut up _ !?" Jeongin was almost lying flat over the table in order to slap a hand over the Jisung’s mouth, "give that to me you bitch"

Jisung lowered the phone and let it be snatched out of his hand. 

"you should thank me" he muttered, "without me you would've ghosted the poor boy forever". 

Jeongin wasn't listening, he was staring, blank faced, at his phone, "he wants to meet up…" 

"yeah, that's what I said" 

Jeongin's head whipped up, "Hyung! He wants to meet up!" 

"Yeah. That's what I said".

Jeongin looked down to his phone, up at Jisung and down again, "he wants to-" 

"FOR FUCKS SAKE JUST SAY YES!" 

After ten minutes of arguing, more phone stealing and the sacrifice of some brave cucumber soldiers Jisung finally managed to convince Jeongin to answer. Not a minute later a reply came.

“He wants to meet up and study together tomorrow! Should I suggest going to the cat?”, Jeongin’s eyes were practically sparkling when he looked up at Jisung. 

The other boy hummed, “But what if the study date goes badly and he keeps coming back anyway because he fell in love with Changbin-hyung’s drinks though?”

Jeongin’s face fell.

“I’m kidding Innie, I'm kidding! Bringing him to the cat is a great idea. You’ll be more comfortable on home ground”.

Jeongin didn’t even swat him for the joke.  _ He really loves this kid doesn’t he?  _ Jisung smiled to himself. His friend was finally breaking out of his shell a little. 

Joengin absorbed in his conversation with his crush Jising took the time to pick up his own phone. 

_ Mother - 5 new messages _

_ Father - 1 new message _

_ Young Wings [re: membership application]  _

Jisung ignored the first two and hurried to open the mail.

_ Hello. _

_ Thank you for your interest in Young Wings! _

_ There's an open time slot today at 5pm, are you’re available? _

_ If so you’ll be meeting the owner Lee Minho at a Café called The Stray cat. The address and directions are in the attached file. You don’t need to prepare anything.  _

_ Kim Seungmin. _

Jisung immediately tapped out a reply that he was available and that he looked forward to it. It wasn’t until he hit  _ send  _ that he realised. Lee Minho. Minho. 

“FUCK!” Jisung slammed his phone down on the table and his head followed close after. 

“Hyung! You scared the shit outta me!”, Jeongin had almost dropped the glass of water he’d just gotten all over himself, “What’s wrong with you?!”

Jisung groaned and banged his head into the table a few more times before answering, “I forgot to tell you yesterday but you remember that guy from the café?”

Jeongin lay his head down next to Jisung so he could see the other’s face, “the rude one that was talking to Chan-hyung?”

“Yup, that’s the one”

“What about him?”

Jeongin was so close his breath tickled Jisung’s cheek. 

“I’ll tell you if you get out of my face you brat”, he whispered. 

Jeongin did as he was told but not without blowing Jisung in the face with some fresh kimchi breath first. 

“I hate you, ” Jisung sat up and Jeongin followed, “The dude from the café, his name is Lee Minho and apparently he’s the owner of Young Wings”. 

Jeongin only tilted his head in response.

“The place we were at yesterday, it’s called Young Wings. While you were busy running away from Freckles I saw the café dude in one of the dance studios. I think Seungmin was about to introduce us when I left to run after you”, Jisung explained, “You must’ve missed him but I also ran into Chan-hyung in the staircase on my way down. Long short I told him i was a member there and that i was using their studios to produce. That’s why I told you I have to start making music again”. 

Jising could almost hear the gears turning in Jeongin’s head as he processed the information. 

“Also Minho is the person I have to have my membership interview with”, Jisung added. 

_ Three, two one- _

“Hyung you’re fucking screwed!”

Jisung was well aware he was screwed. I knew it when Jeongin said it. He knew it when they went back to his dorm to chill before their afternoon classes. He knew it when he got an email half-way through his last lecture for the day from Seungmin saying the meeting was all set up and ready to go, and he  _ definitely  _ knew it when he was outside  _ The Stray Cat _ at 4.55pm.

When he looked in though the window he only saw Mina and Jackson at the counter which meant Changbin probably wasn’t in.

_ Thank fuck,  _ Jisung thought to himself as he flattened down his denim jacket. He didn’t want anyone who knew him to see this unavoidable shitshow. Jisung was just glad his anxiety, especially the social part, had gotten a lot better in the past few years. Had this happened when he was eighteen he would’ve run away and changed his name instead of actually going to the interview. He’d come a long way and he wasn’t about to let this bring him back to square one. 

Jisung took one last deep breath and opened the door to the café he called his second home. It’d be okay. 

The bell rang as the door closed behind him and Jackson looked up from where he was working on something by the cashier. 

“Hey there Jisung, Welcome!”, he called when he saw who had come in. 

Jackson was new at the café so they didn’t really know each other but Jisung and Jeongin had been around when Changbin and Jackson shared shifts enough for them to have learnt each other's names. 

Jisung focused on only looking straight ahead as he walked up to the counter and ordered. He didn’t look back to the rest of the café until he had his drink in his hand. There he was, at the same table, in the same seat as last time. Lee Mihno. The only diffrence was that this time he wasn’t wearing his black leather jacket, instead he had a cotton blazer thrown over, what looked like, a loose fitting white t-shirt.

He was focused on his phone so he didn’t see when Jisung took a shaky breath and made his way through the crowded café towards his table. Minho was just about to take a sip of his coffe when Jisung reached the table.

“Lee Minho?”

Jisung cursed his nervous high pitched voice. It made him sound like a pubescent little boy. Ahhh fuckfuckfuck he’d heard him, he was looking up now he- 

He was choking. 

Jisung stood in shock as he processed what he was seeing. Minho had taken a drink of his coffee, looked up at Jisung and was now coughing his lungs out.

“Fuck!”, Jisung sat down his own cup, ran back to the counter to grab a glass of water and rushed back but before he could give the glass to Minho he tripped over his own feet and most of the liquid flew out of the glass, drenching the man in front on him. 

Jisung turned around in horror to get tissues but Minho called after him, “Wait! I’m okay!”

Jisung slowly turned around to see that Minho had recovered from his near death experience and was currently in the process of taking off the drenched blazer. 

Jising couldn’t help but notice that the water had soaked through and made the long sleeves of his t-shirt slightly see through, relieving the big marks on his arms. Usually people’s marks were only a few centimeters long and more often than not quite faded. These were anything but that. Minho must’ve noticed what had happened as well because he quickly tugged the blazer back on. Not quick enough though. Jisung hadn't meant to pry but his eyes wer drawn to the marks and he'd managed to count to five just on that arm. One of them bright red and another pitch black. One for love and other for death. 

Minho cleared his throat and brought Jisung out of his thoughts.

“I take it you’re Han Jisung?”, he asked, making eye contact for the first time. His voice was low and soft despite just having almost choked to death on black coffee. 

Jisung nodded and sat down in the empty chair, “I'm sorry for sneaking up on you like that”. 

Minho shook his head, “It’s not your fault, I’m just a bit jumpy and I-”, Jisung pretended like he didn’t see the way Minho’s ears turned cherry red, “I um didn’t expect the person I was gonna interview to be you…” 

Jisung chuckled, all nervousness washed away when he realised Minho was just as embarrassed as he was. 

“Yeah, we meet again. This time with names”

Minho cleared his throat again and took another sip of his coffee, without choking this time. 

“Shall we get down to business?”

Minho jumped into explaining the basic structure of  _ Young Wings.  _ It was a relatively new company who focused on giving teenagers and young adults the chance to create regardless of their conditions. Each member paid a fee, which Minho explained they tried to keep as low as possible, and then they were free to book any of Young Wing’s studios room or equipment. That was the reason they held an interview with each potential member. They wanted to make sure everyone who had access to all the expensive and oftentimes sensitive equipment was responsible and knew how to act. 

Minho also went on to explain that he and his co-owner - Momo - strived towards an environment that was welcoming, inspiring and safe for all the members, regardless of gender, race, age or sexuality. At that Jisung nodded seriously and breathed a sigh of relief on the inside. He didn’t know what he’d do if the owner of such a wonderful place turned out to be a racist, homophobic asshole. 

“If you don’t mind me asking”, Jisung said when Minho had finished explaining, “You seem pretty young to be owning a company like this, especially considering all the money that goes into all the equipment you need. How did you get the funds?”

It was something he’d been thinking about ever since Seungmin mentioned Minho was the owner of Young Wings. Starting a company like that and paying the rent for such a big space was  _ expensive _ .

“Ah”, let out a little chuckle, “It’s a bit of a funny story actually”. 

Minho went on to explain how he and Momo, who’d gone to the same dance centre as Minho when they were kids, had always dreamt of starting their own centre for kids who wanted to create even though they knew they’d never had the money to. One day Momo randomly got a letter that said a rich relative she didn’t know existed had written Momo as the sole inheritor of her entire wealth in her will before she died. Momo had to go to Japan to meet with the relatives lawyer to get it all sorted and ultimately stayed a bit longer to get to know that branch of her family better. She was still there but had sent back money to Minho so that he could get the company started before she came back. 

“Fate was on our side I guess”, Minho finished off with a soft smile on his lips. 

Jisung knew he shouldn’t stare but he couldn’t help it. Having sat face to face with the other man for close to an hour now he’d noticed how extremely  _ beautiful  _ he was.

Jisung often admired other’s beauty but this was something else. The way Minho’s hair fell into his eyes when he talked, the small mole on his nose, the flash of his bunny teeth whenever he smiled. It made his heart feel all warm and fuzzy. 

Jisung was brought out of his thoughts when Minho reached into the bag beside him and brought out the contract and a pen along with it. He’d gotten so caught up in Minho’s storytelling he’d almost forgotten what he was there for. 

“Take your time to read through it if you want. I think i covered all of it earlier but you can never be too sure”, Minho handed the paper to Jisung who accepted it and quickly sifted through the information.

Just as Minho had said there wasn’t any new information on the contract so he took the pen and signed on the dotted line without a second thought. He gave it back to Minho who unceremoniously stuffed it back into his bag and grabbed his almost empty coffee cup.

“Cheers to getting that done”, he smiled.

Jisung brought up his cup as well and they gently clanked them together, “Cheers!”

They both drank the last drops of their drinks and put the cups down in sync. 

“I’ve gotta get going but if you have any questions you have my number!” Minho said as he started getting up. Jisung hadn’t noticed earlier but the motorcycle helmet from last time had been lying next to Minho’s bag all this time and was now safely tucked under his arm. 

Jisung tilted his head at the other man, “I don’t have your number though?”

Minho laughed, “It’s in the contract, Jisung”

If it was the fact that Jisung had missed that part when he read through the contract or the way his name rolled off Minho’s tongue that made him blush no one would ever know. 

As the two of them gathered their things together and got up to leave Jisung was going to ask about the motorcycle but was interrupted by his phone vibrating aggressively in his pocket, loud enough for Minho to hear.

“Maybe you should tend to that”, he snickered as he passed, “I’ll see you around Jisung!”

Jisung got a whiff of his cologne and couldn’t formulate an answer before the bell above the entrance jingled and he was gone. 

**Jeongin**

My dude

Hyung

Jisung

Han Jisung

Half-squirrel bastard 

**Jisung**

Would u SHUT UP??!!!

And who gave u permission to call me that???   
  


**Jeongin**

You weren’t replying :((

**Jisung**

I was having my interview

**Jeongin**

for THAT LONG?

**Jisung**

Yes you child

What was it u wanted??

**Jeongin**

I’m bored…..

**Jisung**

I hate you so much

**Author's Note:**

> don't get too attached because updates probably wont' be very frequent hahahhhh


End file.
